Carne Vale

CARNE VALE CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT (NC-17)
Disclaimers Apply


A/N Goddess Foxfeather, Queen of Mad Plotbunnies, Joris has eaten Billy's chocolate. There is an irate Scotsman heading your way with Joaquin in tow...I think if you throw jellybeans at them, they will go away... ;) InterNutter, TC and Maxwell Pink make me happy because they archive. VERY happy! :) Go visit their sites often and say nice things about them to all you know. Readers/Reviewers: Okay. The Killer Kitties(tm) are stalking Rei. Well, the Killer Minions (tm) (which, for some reason, include a marmot-go figure) are stalking but it's on behalf of the black kitty, who is writing disturbing love letters. The other kitty spell checks.

"We never have assemblies on Wednesdays!" Rahne groaned. "Don't tell me they're going to make us do some stupid cheerleader thing now!"
Jean shook her head. "Nope. You guys haven't even been to a practice yet, so you won't be expected to shake your pom poms-or anything else-for a while yet. This is some administrative thing."
Rogue, scowl seemingly permanent, said sotto voce "How about I administrate my foot to Kelly's ass for suggesting this fucking extracurricular shit to the Professor?"
"Now, now," Jean laughed, holding the door to the auditorium open for her friends, "I'm sure it's not so bad. I'm on the soccer team, softball, student government, Octagon Club1, Key Club, Honor Society..."
"Going somewhere with this, Miss Type A2?" Rahne sighed, taking a seat in the back row next to Rogue.
"Just that I'd be in it with you if I could, but I'm already almost overextended..."
"You make Kitty look lazy!" Rogue snorted, slumping down in the seat. "Oh, speak of the devil..."
Kitty, Scott, Amara, Lance, and Todd took seats in the row in front of them, raising some eyebrows at the odd grouping of popular, though odd, students, with those considered outcasts even by the outcasts. Turning in her seat, Kitty whispered loudly, "Where's Kurt?"
"We thought you had him," Rahne whispered back, the sound of the vice principal tapping on the mic signaling the start of the assembly.
The noise in the auditorium fell to a dull roar as Edward Kelly took the stage. "Students, a few announcements before we begin... Senior Parking is once again becoming a problem. Please remember that if you don't have a sticker, you have to park in the general lot..." There were some grumbling noises from juniors and unstickered seniors before he continued, "And I'm sure some of you have heard, but we have a whole slew of new cheerleaders for next semester!"
Kitty sank down in her seat and knew her friends were doing the same as necks craned and whispers raced. "Scott, could you blast me? Just a little?"
Scott patted her arm sympathetically as Kelly continued, "In a bittersweet turn of events for all you sports fans, all but two members of the current cheerleading squad are graduating in May! These new girls will, I'm sure, be a welcome replacement for our old favorites! Why don't you all stand up?"
"Why don't I shove my boot up your...."
"Rahne!" Jean hissed. Kitty, Rahne, Amara, and Rogue stood up slowly, derisive comments and catcalls erupting across the auditorium.
"Shut up!" Todd yelled when someone made a disparaging comment about Rogue.
Lance yanked Amara down by her wrist. "I don't like this..."
"You liked it wellugh ugh last night," she murmured as Kelly began speaking again.
"Now, for the announcement that brings us here today..." He paused theatrically and took off his glasses, worn more for effect than need, and polished them on his sleeve before speaking. "It is with great sadness and anticipation that I hereby announce my retirement, effective Friday." He paused again, as if expecting a rush of panicked students begging him to stay. Finding no such thing, he flushed slightly and continued. "I've decided to pursue my true calling...politics. As of Monday morning," he gestured to someone off stage and a moment later, a tall red head strolled out, legs to her neck and hair halfway down her back, looking entirely indecent for a high school principal if the amount of cleavage she was showing was any indication, "Miss Blau will be the new Principal of Bayville High!" He clapped heartily, the only one doing so, and motioned for the woman to take the podium.
"Good morning," she purred, and almost every male heart rate in the room doubled. "I know this is a shock for many of you," the sarcasm obvious in her tone, "but I hope that together, we will be able to make Bayville High the first-rachoochool it should be..." She peered over the students and seemed to lock eyes with the back rows for a brief moment, giving Jean a hideous feeling of vertigo.
Try as she might, she could not get a reading on the woman. It was like running into a psychic brick wall. She leaned forward and whispered to Scott, "Something's wrong here..."
"You're telling me," he muttered. "She's giving me the heebie jeebies!"
"Is there a question in the back?" the new principal barked.
There was a groan that ran through the Institute students, but Jean rose to the occasion. "Yes, actually...I was wondering if you were going to change the school policy on fundraising events held during school hours. Will we still be limited to baked goods before class and during lunch or can we expand the field, as it were?"
The question caught Miss Blau, as she was calling herself, sufficiently off guard. The moment of silence that preceded her answer was quite telling for several members of the student body. Kitty leaned over and whispered to Amara, "I know you hate this, but I think today is going to be Operation Crimson Tide day..."
Amara wrinkled her nose but nodded. She whispered to Rahne who in turn passed the word to Rogue and Jean. Todd, Lance and Scott exchanged glances. "Huh?" Todd finally asked as the woman up front droned on about school policies.
"Don't worry about it," Kitty hissed. "Just don't wait up for us after school..." If all went as planned, she, Rahne, Jean, Amara and Rogue would all be home by then.

Kurt was not quite sure what he was seeing, but was torn between great interest and great concern. Storm, watching what seemed to be a videotape of cheerleaders practicing and following along with the steps, although a beat behind the girls on the tape. "Frau Storm?" he said after a moment.
"Kurt!" she yelped, clutching at her throat in uncharacteristic startlement. "What're you doing home?"
Raising his sling-cradled arm, he said sheepishly, "I missed seeing Beast last night, so he took my cast off this morning and put me in this thing. I'm not healed all the way, so he gave me a painkiller for the discomfort he caused...Doctor Reyes asked me a ton of questions, too, so I ended up being really late. I just stayed home." After a pause, he added, "Logan knows!"
Storm nodded. "I'm not going to force you to go to school, don't worry...you just surprised me."
"What were you doing?" he asked, smirking slightly and stepping further into the room.
She hit pause on the tape and actually colored slightly at the mention of being caught out. "The Professor, Logan and I decided that, in order to make you all look like..."
"Desirable students?" he suggested.
"Yes, that will do...in order to make you all seem to be assets to the school rather than detriments, which you most certainly are *not *, no matter what Kelly and his friends seem to think, it would be best if you were all involved in after school activities. Cheerleading was wide open since almost all the current ones are graduating this year..." she shrugged. "The Professor worked out an arrangement via telephone with the incoming principal and the coach."
"Incoming principal?" Kurt asked, sidetracked.
"Mmm...you'll need to ask your friends for the details. All I know is that you're getting a new principal. In light of the mass population of cheerleaders at the Institute now and the fact none of them have experience, it was someone's bright idea that I help them learn routines. I have never felt so debased in my entire life."
"Oh?" Kurt was willing his body to obey his request to stay calm. He could not help but think of Kitty and the night before, want and guilt rushing together to make a paradoxical state of aroused shame.
"This is degrading! Girls barely out of puberty not so much cheering as...as...shaking _things! _"
"Erk...I've got to...go...now...." Kurt ignored Storm's bemused look and nearly barreled into Logan on his way upstairs. "Sorry!"
"What's with you?"
"Packing!" Kurt heard Logan snort and head into the rec room.
"Whoo-eee," the older man teased his lover, "Shake it you cocoa goddess!"3
Kurt winced at the sound of lightning cracking in the house, followed by a short howl from Logan. He shut the door to his room quickly before he heard any more. _I have a while before everyone comes home...plenty of time to set up camp... _ He retrieved a small suitcase from his closet and stuffed it full of underwear, socks, t-shirts and a pair of jeans, adding his toothbrush, toothpaste, grooming supplies and, in a moment of self-torture, as many pictures of Kitty as he could fit in the bag. _That should last me...I can port as close to school as possible after they leave in the mornings, spend lunch in the library or bathroom, schedule my mealtimes around hers, change kitchen duty with Jamie so I work with Scott instead of Kitty, and just pretend she doesn't exist for twenty more days...Easy as pie. _ He groaned aloud and wished for one brief, flailing moment that he was Protestant. _Sorry, Mama, but at least they don't have Lent like this... _ Kurt sighed and zipped his bag shut, trekking to the kitchen where he procured several plastic grocery sacks and carefully selected items he knew were his specifically or would not be readily missed. When he had three bags full, he extracted several bills from his worn wallet and used a magnet to hold it to the fridge. As an afterthought, he tore a piece of paper from the grocery list pad and scribbled, "For what I took..."
The basement room was not comfortable by a long shot. He felt somewhat strange, staying in the room that housed Kitty's surplus, but did not want to chance staying a level up in one of the guest rooms. He did not want to be bothered unless he sought out the company of others and this level of the basement, the warren of storage rooms and utilities, was the perfect place. _So long as Logan doesn't come down on a mission of mercy, I'm all set... _ He had made a pallet of old sheets, thick enough to keep the chill of the floor from his bones but not thick enough for true comfort, and had used the smaller boxes to cordon off the area from anyone who might peek into the room. At first glance, all they would see would be boxes. _Perfect _, he sighed to himself, _ now I can do my penance. _

Pietro stared out the window in his room, contemplating several things. He wondered if he had been kicked out of school yet for excessive absences, he wondered if Rogue really loved Todd or if she was playing a sick joke on him still, he wondered why he seemed to be sore in a very private area when he had not "done" anything in quite a while, and why was there a small lump there anyway?4 Pietro balled his fist and slammed it into the window frame, shaking the glass makimaking a tiny crack run from one corner to the other. The thing that preyed first and foremost on his mind that day, everyday of late, it seemed to him, was Magneto, his father. _How could he put her back in charge? I'll show him...I'm much better than she is. I'm younger, faster, smarter, I know what's what and I don't have freakboy for a relative... _ A tiny little black plan began forming in Pietro's mind, a tiny little plan that grew into a ball of hate. _If I prove myself to him, he'll have to put me in charge. I can get Lance and Todd back, and when Rogue sees how good I am at this, she'll come back, too! And who'd miss Mystique, anyway? _
1 A student version of the Optimist Club. Never really knew what they did but I had a friend who was in it and they always had meetings...
2 Type Asonasonalities are overachievers, usually a bit tense, perfectionists...
3 ProPhile is corrupting me. That line is from Bringing Down the House; ProPhile suggested it. Lol.
4 Flashback-it's the transmitter thingy, for those who were lost, lol.